Transition

I accessed CAMHS numerous times between the age of 13 and 15. Though I had a period where I didn’t access mental health services, I found myself in Adult Services again when I was 19 years old. Although I didn’t transition straight from CAMHS to Adult Services, by accessing support from both, I did recognise some real differences in my care. I hope by sharing my experiences, including some of these differences, it can help other people as they experience transition.

Within my time accessing adult services I was given increased independence and responsibility in relation to my own care. Though this initially felt strange- on reflection I feel this was beneficial for my personal recovery journey, as I felt more empowered to make choices in my life.  Looking back, when I was accessing services when I was younger, I maybe looked to professionals to ‘fix me,’ and didn’t really know how to trust myself, or believe that I held any power.

Don’t get me wrong, this shift wasn’t an easy or quick process, but I tried to embrace the independence in a positive way. This meant that when discharge finally came around from adult services, it felt like less of a drastic change not having services, as I already had experience of navigating my personal recovery with more autonomy.

I know it can feel daunting to be told that you have more independence or that you’re technically an ‘adult’, but through talking through this with professionals I hope others can see this as a potential opportunity too.

Don’t get me wrong, Adult services supported me to make decisions and still felt caring and supportive - but just in a different way!

For example, within CAMHS professionals captured my voice as an individual, but also understandably asked for parents’ considerations and input. Whilst I completely recognise the benefits of hearing from family members, for me it sometimes meant I couldn’t be as open through fears of my family being told certain things. As I didn’t always feel comfortable with my family knowing certain things, it sometimes meant I wasn’t as open and honest about how things were for me in my CAMHS sessions, and that meant that sometimes I didn’t get the support I needed as a result.

In Adult Services the space really felt like it was my space, and helped me feel more engaged in the therapy process.

The language and approach used in Adult Services also felt quite different and took some getting used to. It’s so important that professionals to adapt language to the individual and, for me, I appreciated professionals in Adult Services being open and honest about the consequences or realistic implications around some of my choices. For me, it was helpful in my recovery journey as I was always involved, well-informed and aware of everything relating to me my care, including why decisions were being made. It’s always important that professionals are sensitive in how things are approached when it comes to mental health treatment, but this helped me feel really respected and trusted by professionals in Adult Services, and this ultimately helped our relationship and my recovery.